Binder unit



R. E. DENNIS Oct. 10, 1961 BINDER UNIT 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 28, 1958 IN V EN TOR. RALPH E. DENNlS CORBET'RMAHONEKM ILLER- & RAMBO ATTORNEYS R. E. DENNIS Oct. 10, 1961 BINDER UNIT 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 28, 1958 INVENTOR. RALPH E. DENNiS 'COR-BET'lZ-MAHONERMILLER & RAMBO ATTORNEYS BY Wh/L Oct. 10, 1961 R. E. DENNIS 3,

. BINDER UNIT Filed Nov. 28, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TOR.

RALPH E. DENNIS CORBETT- MAHONEY\MILLER- & RAMBO ATTORNEYS 3,003,503 BINDER UNIT Ralph E. Dennis, 2497 Fishinger Road, Columbus, Qhio Filed Nov. 28, 1958, Ser. No. 776,953 13 Claims. (Cl. 129-44) My invention relates to a binder unit. It has to do, more particularly, with a binder unit for receiving and retaining loose-leaf sheets. It is of such a nature that the loose-leaf sheets can be positioned in the binder unit and removed therefrom with ease.

Although the binder unit of this invention can be made of any suitable material, such as plastic, metal, etc., it will be described particularly with reference to plastic ma terial since it is especially designed to replace the plastic binders now on the market.

Plastic binders which are now commonly used ordinarily comprise a backbone extending the full length of the binder and which has flexible rings or fingers formed integrally thereon in longitudinally spaced relationship and which normally are curled into associationwith the backbone. -In order to insert loose-leaf sheets in the binder or remove them therefrom it is necessary to provide a binder-operating machine which has means for spreading the rings relative to the backbone. Thus, a person using one of these binders must have a relatively expensive piece of equipment, that is, the binding machine, and obviously this binding machine would not always be accessible when it is desired to insert or remove loose-leaf sheets in and from the binder. Also, the parts of the binder-operating machine are usually so disposed as to interfere with insertion of the sheetsin the binder and removal therefrom. Attempts have been made to overcome this by having special loose-leaf sheets with T-shaped binder slots rather than enclosed holes so that the sheets can be forced in or out relative to the rings without opening the binder. However, obviously this is not very satisfactory since it is difficult to accomplish and the sheets are frequently torn at the slots. Also, quite often the sheets accidentally become displaced from the binder. Furthermore, due to the fact that this one-piece binder must initially have elasticity and retain the elasticity by withstanding the repeated opening and closing operations with the binderoperating machine, the binder must be made of an expensive thermoplastic material. This material, furthermore, is subject to heat and cold expansion and contraction. The one-piece binder could not be made of metal because the metal of the fingers or rings would soon fatigue and break. Furthermore, because the binder is made in onepiece, expensive and time-consuming operations are required to manufacture the binder.

In view of the difiiculties expressed above which are encountered with plastic binders of the one-piece type indicated, an attempt has been made to overcome these by providing a two-piece binder. This two-piece binder comprises a backbone section with a ring section slidably mounted thereon. The ring section has an integral rib extending the full length thereof upon which the fingers are mounted and this rib is adapted to slidably fit in a slot on one edge of the binder. Therefore, one end of each of the rings or fingers is carried by the rib and the other end is free. The free ends of the rings are adapted to be inserted in a slot along the other edge of the backbone. Therefore, in using this binder, it is necessary to first insert the fingers in the loose-leaf sheets and then attempt United States Patent W 3,903,563 Patented Oct. 1%, 1961 to slide the backbone over the ring sections. This is very clifiicult to do since the free ends of the fingers or rings must be guided into the finger-receiving slots at one side of the backbone. This is extremely difficult if the ends of the fingers are out of alignment. Further more, the fingers must have special shouldered tips formed thereon which will fit the receiving slot on the backbone and will slide thereinv These tips tend to become distorted so that the fingers will not be retained in place in the backbone slot. Thus, this type of binder is difficult to operate since the pages to be inserted must be held in one hand and the ring section in the other in order to apply the sheets to the binder. Then, in inserting the ring section on the backbone it is necessary to have a relative sliding movement the entire length of the backbone. This operation is very awkward and requires definite skill in handling. Furthermore, the special tips formed on the ends of the fingers make for difiiculty in inserting the fingers in the loose-leaf sheets. The fragile ends of the fingers are relied upon to hold them in association with the backbone section with the result that there is danger of breakage of these fingers. Furthermore, it is difficult to lock the two sections of the binder together and the locking means employed usually results in breakage of parts of the binder after several uses of it.

According to the present invention, I provide a binder which overcomes all the difficulties of the one-piece type of binder as well as the two-piece type of binder discussed above. The binder of my invention is made of two sections, namely a backbone section and a ring section which is slidably mounted on the backbone section for limited sliding movement. This sliding movement will lock and unlock the rings relative to the backbone. No binder-operating machine will be required for opening and closing the binder. Manufacture of the binder will be greatly facilitated as compared to the one-piece binder because it is made of two units. Both units of my binder can be formed by simple extrusion and cutting operations. As previously stated, these sections may be formed from inexpensive material since it is not necessary to have and retain the elasticity necessary with a onepiece plastic binder.

The binder, according to my invention, comprises the backbone and the separate ring section as indicated above. The backbone is provided along one edge thereof with a channel and the ring section is provided with a rib which is inserted in the channel and extends the length thereof. The rib carries a plurality of the rings or fingers at longitudinally spaced intervals. Thus, one end of each ring or finger is attached to the rib and the other end thereof is free. These free ends are adapted to overlap a flange carried by the backbone at the edge opposite the edge where the channel is disposed. Each of the fingers is provided with a rigid locking portion and the wall of the channel is provided with cooperating locking lugs alternating with spaces in which the locking portions of the fingers may swing. Assuming that it is desired to lock the fingers in association with the flange on the backbone, it is only necessary to slide the finger or ring section relative to the backbone section so that the locking portions of the fingers are within the locking lugs along the channel. This will prevent the ring section from pivoting relative to the backbone unit. To unlock the unit, it is merely necessary to slide the ring or finger section relative to the backbone section the width of the fingers and then the ring section can be pivoted relative to the backbone section to move the fingers away from the backbone to permit ready insertion of sheets in the binder or removal therefrom.

This arrangement also overcomes the disadvantages of the two-piece binder of the prior art since the locking action is accomplished at the ends of the rings or fingers where they are joined to the connecting rib, which might be termed the root ends and not at the free ends. Thus, the free ends need not have any special shape which would interfere with passage of sheets on and oif the fingers. Furthermore, only a limited sliding movement is necessary in locking and unlocking the binder and during this sliding movement there is no need to guide the ends of the fingers into a receiving slot. The ring section will always be in position on the backbone which will facilitate handling during insertion or removal of the loose-leaf sheets. The binder can be made of any material since it can be of rugged, rigid structure.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention but it is to be understood that this is by way of example and that specific details thereof may be varied without departing from basic principles of my invention.

In these drawings:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of my binder showing it in closed condition.

FIGURE 2 is a similar view but showing it in open condition.

FIGURE 3 is an isometric view showing a portion of the binder in closed position with the loose-leaf sheets retained therein.

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 but showing the binder open to permit removal of the sheets.

FIGURE 5 is an end view of the binder showing it in closed condition.

FIGURE 6 is a view similar to FIGURE 5 but showing the binder in open condition.

FIGURE 7 is an isometric view showing a portion of the backbone section of the binder.

FIGURE 8 is an isometric view showing a portion of the ring section of the binder.

FIGURE 9 is an isometric view illustrating a portion of the backbone section of the binder showing the stops at one end thereof.

The general structure of my binder has been discussed above and the detailed structure will now be apparent by reference to the attached drawings which will now be described in detail.

In FIGURES l and 2, I have illustrated my binder as comprising the backbone section 11 and the ring or finger section 12. Both of these sections extend the full length of the binder. In FIGURE 1, the binder is shown in its closed condition and in FIGURE 2 it is shown in its open condition.

The backbone section 11 is also illustrated in FIG- URES 5 to 7 and 9. It is formed as an integral piece and comprises the flat body 11a which has an inwardly extending, finger-retaining flange 13 disposed completely therealong at one edge thereof. The flange 13 is at right angles to the flat body 11a. A rib-receiving slide channel 14 is formed along the opposite edge of the body 11a the full length thereof. This channel 14 has an outer inwardly extending wall 15 substantially the same depth as the flange 13. Extending inwardly from the inner edge of this wall 15 at an angle thereto toward the body 11a are the finger-locking lugs 16. Between these lugs 16 are the finger-receiving spaces 17. As will be apparent hereinafter, the lugs 16 and spaces 17 correspond in width and also correspond with the width of the fingers or rings. Spaced within the wall 15 is the inwardly extending flange 18 which forms the other wall of the channel 14. This wall 18 is disposed directly within the ends of the lugs 16 but is spaced slightly therefrom so that a space 19 is provided between the end of each 4 lug 16 and the associated edge of the flange 18. The inner edge of the flange 18 is turned away from the wall 15, as indicated at 20, and one corner of each lug 16 is rounded, as indicated at 21.

The ring or finger section 12 is also shown in FIG- URES 5, 6, and 8. It comprises the rib 25 which is preferably of circular cross section and which extends the full length thereof. The ring-like fingers 26 are provided at longitudinally spaced intervals along the rib and are preferably integral therewith. The spacing of these fingers 26 is the same as the spacing of the locking lugs 16 provided on the backbone 11 and the spaces 27' between the fingers are the same with an arrangement of the same width as the spaces 17 between the lugs 16. The fingers 26 have the outer free ends or tips 28 and at their root ends are connected to the rib 25 preferably by an integral connection. This connection includes the locking portions 29 and the angular connecting portions 3%. The locking portions 29 are flat and extend radially from the rib 25. The connecting portions 30 extend angularly from the outer ends of the portions 29 reversely over the radially extending locking portions 29.

To mount the ring section 12 on the backbone section 11 it is merely necessary to force the rib 25 through the spaces 19 so that the rib will be positioned in the chan nel 14. During this action, the fingers 26 will be aligned with the spaces .17 of the backbone section 11. The lugs 16 will spring sufiiciently to permit passage of the rib 25 laterally through the spaces 19.

As long as the fingers 26 are aligned with the spaces 17, the rib 25 may be oscillated within the channel 14. This will move the fingers 26 from the open position shown in FIGURE 6 to the closed position shown in FIGURE 5. When in the open position shown in FIG- URE 6, loose-leaf sheets S may be easily passed over the free ends 28 of the fingers as shown in FIGURE 4. These ends are free of any projections and will not interfere with the mounting of the sheets thereon. Furthermore, at this time the angular connecting portion 30 of each finger will engage the outer wall 15 of the channel l4 and prevent further outward swinging of the fingers 26. Therefore, the fingers will be held in proper association with the backbone to receive the sheets S. At this time. the straight locking portions 29 of the fingers will extend outwardly through the spaces 17 between the lugs 16. No relative sliding movement between the sections 11 and 12 can occur at this time.

If it is now desired to lock the binder in closed position, as shown in FIGURES 3 and 5, the section 12 is oscillated towards the backbone 11. This will bring the free ends 28 of the fingers 26 within the finger-retaining flange 13 of the backbone. During this movement the rib 25 merely rotates in the channel 14. The straight locking portions 29 of the fingers will extend over the inner edge of the channel flange 18, as shown in FIGURE 5, and will rest thereon. To lock the section 12 in closed position, it is now merely necessary to slide the unit 12 and the unit 11 relatively a distance equal to the width of each finger 26. This will position the locking portions 29 within the locking lugs 16 on the backbone. It will be noted that the locking lugs 16 are at a slightly sharper angle than the angular finger-connecting portions 30. The locking action will result from the inner lower ends of the lugs 16 overlapping and engaging the locking portions 29, as shown best in FIGURE 5.

Thus. it will be apparent that to lock the ring section 12 on the backbone section 11 or to release it to permit relative oscillation, it is merely necessary to provide for a relative sliding movement through a distance equal to the width of each finger 26. To limit the sliding movement to this extent, a stop arrangement is provided on the backbone section 11 for cooperating with the ring section 12. This stop arrangement comprises stop lugs 35 which are formed at spaced intervals in the edge of the channel wall 18, as shown best in FIGURES 7 and 9.

These lugs 35 will engage the associated edges of the locking portions 29 of the fingers to limit the sliding movement to an amount equal to the width of the portions 2?, that is, the width of the fingers 26. The lugs 35 are in alignment with one edge of the associated lugs 16, that is, the straight edge opposite to the edge provided with the curved corner 21. This curved corner 21 will serve as a cam corner to aid in guiding the portions 30 and 29 of the fingers into the spaces 17 as the fingers 26 are swung outwardly. The curved edge 20 of the flange 18 will serve as a bearing edge along Which the locking portions 29 of the fingers 26 will slide.

It will be apparent from this description that i have provided a binder which may be made of relatively inexpensive material, either plastic or metal, since it need not have the property of good elasticity that will be retained after repeated bendings. The binder unit is made of two sections, both of which can be produced by simple extrusionoperations and the fingers on the ring section can be produced by a simple cutting operation.

The binder can be operated from a locked position to an unlocked position or vice versa, merely by a simple sliding and oscillating movement. Therefore, no special binding machine is necessary for operating the unit as is the case with one-piece binders of the prior art type. Loading and unloading of the ring-like fingers with looseleaf sheets is greatly facilitated due to the fact that it is not necessary to have a binder machine for spreading the fingers away from the backbone during these operations. Furthermore, this loading and unloading of the binder is greatly facilitated because the ends of the fingers are completely free and unobstructed during these operations. Furthermore, the finger tips are free of any shoulders or bends which would interfere with these operations. The locking operation is accomplished in such a manner that the free ends of the fingers need not be in exact alignment since they are not positioned in a locking slot as will prior art two-piece binders. Even if the ends are slightly out of alignment they will be cammed into place by the retaining flange on the backbone when the fingers are swung into closed position. As described, the locking of the fingers preferably occurs at the root ends of the fingers.

It will be apparent that a number of advantages of this binder structure have been discussed above but others will be apparent from the preceding description, the attached drawings, and the following claims.

. According to the provisions of the patent statutes, the principles of this invention have been explained and have been illustrated and described in what is now considered to represent the best embodiment. However, it is to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a ring section slidably connected together for relative movement between locked and unlocked positions, said ring section comprising a longitudinally extending connecter rib and ring-like fingers extending therefrom at longitudin-ally spaced intervals so as to providespaces therebetween with the root ends of the fingers connected to the rib and their other ends free, said backbone having a ribreceiving channel at one edge thereof in which said rib is slidably disposed, said rib being oscillatable in said channel to move the free ends of said ring-like fingers toward and from the backbone, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone for cooperating with said fingers to lock the ring section with the free ends of the fingers in association with said backbone, said lugs being of sub stantially the same width as said fingers and being spaced to correspond with the spacing of said fingers with spaces therebetween corresponding to the width of said fingers, said locking lugs being disposed on the backbone adjacent said channel for cooperating with the adjacent root ends of the fingers, said root ends of the fingers being provided with locking portions for cooperating with said locking lugs, said locking'portions comprising straight end portions connected to the rib and angular connecting portions between said last-named portions and the root ends of the fingers, said locking lugs on the backbone being angularly disposed for engaging the said locking portions of the fingers when located therewithin by the relative sliding movement of the backbone and ring sections.

2. A binder unit according to claim 1 in which the angular lugs extend inwardly over the channel and angularly toward the inner wall of the channel but are spaced therefrom to provide slots in which said locking portions of the fingers may slide longitudinally.

3. A binder unit according to claim 2 in which the edge of the backbone opposite to the edge at which the channel is disposed is provided with an inwardly extending finger-retaining flange within which the free ends of the fingers will be disposed when the ring section is locked in closed position.

4. A binder unit according to claim 3 including stop means on said binder for limiting relative sliding of said backbone section and said ring section to a distance corresponding to the width of each of said fingers.

5. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a ring section slidably and oscillatably connected together for relative movement between locked and unlocked positions, said ring section comprising a longitudinally extending connect er rib and ring-like fingers extending therefrom at longitudinally spaced intervals so as to provide spaces therebetween with the root ends of the fingers connected to the rib and their other ends free, means for connecting said rib to said backbone section for relative sliding movement axially oi the rib and for relative oscillating movements about the axis of the rib to move the free ends of the fingers toward and from the backbone section, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone for cooperating with the root ends of said fingers to lock the ring section with the free ends of the fingers in association with said backbone section, said lugs being of substantial ly the same Width as said fingers and being spaced to correspond with the spacing of said fingers with spaces therebetween corresponding to the width of said fingers, said root ends of the fingers being provided with locking portions for engaging with said locking lugs, said locking portions comprising straight end portions connected to the rib and angular connecting portions between said lastnamed portions and the root ends of the fingers, said locking lugs on the backbone section being angularly disposed for engaging the said locking portions of the fingers when located therewithin by the relative sliding movement of the backbone and ring sections.

6. A binder unit according to claim 5 including cooperating stop means between the backbone section and the ring section to limit relative sliding movement to a dis tance corresponding to the width of each of said fingers.

7. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a ring section slidably and oscillatably connected together for relatively movement between locked and unlocked positions, said ring section comprising a longitudinally extending connector rib and ring-like fingers connected thereto at longitudinally spaced intervals, said fingers having root ends connected to the rib and having outer tips free and having spaces therebetween, means for connecting said rib to said backbone section for relative sliding movement axially of the rib and for relative oscillating movement about the axis of the rib to move the free tips of the fingers toward and from the backbone section, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with the root ends of said fingers to lock the ring section with the free tips of the fingers in association with said backbone section, said lugs being of substantially the same width as said fingers with which they cooperate and being spaced to correspond with the spacing of said fingers with spaces therebetween corresponding to the width of said fingers to permit alignment with said spaces between said fingers by relative axial movement of said rib and backbone section, said root ends of the fingers being provided with locking portions for engaging with said locking lugs, each of said locking portions comprising an end portion connected to the rib and a connecting portion disposed angularly relative to said end portion between the end portion and the corresponding finger, said locking lugs on the backbone section being disposed at substantially the same angle as said locking portions for engaging the said locking portions of the fingers when located therewithin by the relative sliding movement of the backbone and ring sections.

8. A binder unit according to claim 7 including cooperating stop means between the backbone section and the ring section to limit relative sliding movement to a distance corresponding to the width of each of said fingers.

9. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a ring section slidably and oscillatably connected together for relative movement between locked and unlocked positions, said ring section comprising a longitudinally extending connecter rib and ring-like fingers connected thereto at longitudinally spaced intervals, said fingers having root ends connected to the rib and having outer tips free and having spaces therebetween, means for connecting said rib to said backbone section for relative sliding movement axially of the rib and for relative oscillating movement about the axis of the rib to move the free tips of the fingers toward and from the backbone section, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with the root ends of said fingers to lock the ring section with the free tips of the fingers in association with said backbone section, said locking lugs being of substantially the same width as said fingers and the spaces therebetween and being spaced longitudinally along said backbone section to permit alignment with said fingers and with said spaces between said fingers by relative axial movement of said rib and backbone section, said root ends of the fingers being provided with locking portions for engaging with said locking lugs, each of said locking portions comprising an end portion connected to the rib and a connecting portion disposed angularly relative to said end portion between the end portion and the corresponding finger, said locking lugs on the backbone section being disposed at substantially the same angle as said locking portions for engaging the said locking portions of the fingers when located therewithin by the relative sliding movement of the backbone and ring sections.

10. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a finger section slidably and oscillatably connected together for relative movement between locked and unlocked positions, said finger section comprising a pluraltty of fingers disposed at longitudinally spaced intervals with spaces therebetween, means connecting said fingers together adjacent their root ends at said longitudinally spaced intervals with their outer tips free, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with fingers to lock the finger section with the free tips of the fingers in association with said backbone section, said locking lugs being of substantially the same width as said fingers and the spaces therebetween and being spaced longitudinally along said backbone section to permit alignment with the cooperating fingers and with the spaces therebetween by relative slidable move-- ment of said finger and backbone sections, said fingers being provided adjacent their root ends with locking portions for engaging with cooperating locking lugs, each of said locking portions comprising an end portion and a connecting portion disposed angularly relative to said end portion, said locking lugs on the backbone section being disposed at substantially the same angle as said finger locking portions for engaging the said locking portions when located therewithin by the relative movement of the backbone and finger sections. I

11. A binder unit comprising a backbone section and a finger section slidably and oscillatably connected together for relative movement between locked and unlocked positions, said finger section comprising a plurality of fingers disposed at longitudinally spaced intervals with spaces therebetween, means connecting said fingers together adjacent their root ends at said longitudinally spaced intervals with their outer tips free, and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with fingers to lock the finger section with the free tips of the fingers in association with said backbone section, said locking lugs being of substantially the same width as said fingers and the spaces therebetween and being spaced longitudinally along said backbone section to permit alignment with cooperating fingers and the spaces therebetween by relative slidable movement of said finger and backbone sections, said fingers being provided adjacent their root ends with locking portions for engaging with cooperating locking lugs, each of said locking portions comprising an end portion and a connecting portion disposed angularly relative to said end portion, said locking lugs on the backbone section being disposed at substantially the same angle as said finger locking portions for engaging the said locking portions when located therewithin by the relative movement of the backbone and finger sections.

12. A binder unit formed of two main sections comprising a backbone section and a loose-leaf engaging ring section having a root end and a free tip end, said ring section including a longitudinally extending rib at the root end thereof, means for connecting said rib to said backbone section for relative sliding movement axially of the rib and for relative oscillating movement about the axis of the rib to move the ring section into and out of loose-leaf retaining relationship with the backbone section, said backbone section being of substantially channel form with a back having two inwardly extending flanges, one of which is at each edge thereof, a third flange spaced on the back inwardly of one of said two flanges and extending in parallel relationship thereto toform a rib-receiving channel with the latter flange, said rib being oscillatable in said channel to bring the ring section into cooperation with the backbone section with its free tip end laterally inwardly of the other of said two flanges and in cooperation therewith so that the lastnamed flange will serve as a retaining flange and means operated by relative sliding movement of said sections for locking the ring section and the backbone section in that cooperative relationship, said means including longitudinally spaced locking portions on said ring section adjacent said rib and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with said locking portions, said locking lugs being disposed on the adjacent flange of the backbone section and extending inwardly over said channel toward said third flange but terminating short thereof to overlie the rib in said channel, said locking lugs being of substantially the same width as said ring section locking portions and the spaces therebetween and being spaced longitudinally along said backbone section to permit alignment with cooperating ring-section locking portions and the spaces therebetween by relative sliding movement of said ring and backbone sections.

13. A binder unit formed of two main sections comprising a backbone section and a loose-leaf engaging ring section having a root end and a free tip end, said ring section including a longitudinally extending rib at the root end thereof, means for connecting said rib to said backbone section for relative sliding movement axially of the rib and for relative oscillating movement about the axis of the rib to move the ring section into and out of loose-leaf retaining relationship with the backbone section, said backbone section being of substantially channel form with a back having two inwardly extending flanges, one of which is at each edge thereof, said rib being disposed adjacent one of said flanges and being oscillatable to bring the ring section into cooperation with the backbone section with its free tip end laterally inwardly of the other of said two flanges and in cooperation therewith so that the last-named flange will serve as a retaining flange, and means operated by relative sliding movement of said sections for locking the ring section and the backbone section in that cooperative relationship, said means including longitudinally spaced locking portions on said ring section adjacent said rib and longitudinally spaced locking lugs on said backbone section for cooperating with said locking portions, said locking lugs being disposed on the adjacent flange of the backbone section and extending inwardly to overlie said rib, said locking lugs being of substantially the same width as said ring section locking portions and the spaces therebetween and being spaced longitudinally along said backbone section to permit alignment with cooperating ring-section locking portions and the spaces therebetween by relative sliding movement of said ring and backbone sections.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

